Obama speaks out as Trump moves to end DACA: 'This is about basic decency'

Former President Barack Obama released a statement condemning President Trump’s order to end his executive action that protects people who immigrated illegally to the U.S. as children.

In a statement Tuesday afternoon, Obama conceded that immigration is a complicated and controversial topic over which people of goodwill can have reasonable disagreements. But Obama argued that the White House’s most recent action to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as DACA, does not fall into this category.

“Ultimately, this is about basic decency. This is about whether we are a people who kick hopeful young strivers out of America, or whether we treat them the way we’d want our own kids to be treated. It’s about who we are as a people — and who we want to be,” Obama said.

The former president also pointed out that the immigrants affected by the Trump administration’s latest action were brought to the United States as children — sometimes infants — and are often not familiar with their home country’s culture or language. They often don’t even know they are undocumented until they need to fill out an application for work, college or a driver’s license.

Demonstrators march in response to the Trump administration’s announcement that it would end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. (Photo: Zach Gibson/Getty Images)

“This is about young people who grew up in America — kids who study in our schools, young adults who are starting careers, patriots who pledge allegiance to our flag,” he said. “These DREAMers are Americans in their hearts, in their minds, in every single way but one: on paper.”

Obama noted that politicians on both sides of the aisle have pushed for legislation that would allow these young people to stay in the country and earn citizenship if they were willing to attend college or enlist in the military. He said congressional inaction forced his administration to take action to protect them from deportation.

“To target these young people is wrong – because they have done nothing wrong,” he said. “It is self-defeating — because they want to start new businesses, staff our labs, serve in our military and otherwise contribute to the country we love. And it is cruel.”

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced earlier Tuesday that the Trump administration would start phasing out Obama’s program, which he characterized “unilateral executive amnesty,” on March 5, 2018. He called upon Congress to present the president with replacement legislation by that time that would offer the estimated 800,000 young undocumented immigrants a road to legal status.

Former President Barack Obama delivering a speech to the Montreal Chamber of Commerce, June 6, 2017. (Photo: Dario Ayala/Reuters)

Former Vice President Joe Biden also released a statement opposing the Trump administration’s decision. He recounted a story of a young girl who grew up in the U.S. but now must live in fear that she would be sent back to a country she has never known.

“These people are all Americans. So let’s be clear: Throwing them out is cruel. It is inhumane. And it is not America,” Biden said. “Congress and the American people now have an obligation to step up and show our neighbors that they’re welcome here, in the only place they’ve ever called home.”

Although Obama has publicly opposed many of Trump’s proposals and actions — both as a candidate and a president — this recent statement is his most forceful since leaving office. Last January, in his first public statement since leaving office, Obama said that “American values are at stake” as Trump moved forward with his travel ban.

“Immigration can be a controversial topic. We all want safe, secure borders and a dynamic economy, and people of goodwill can have legitimate disagreements about how to fix our immigration system so that everybody plays by the rules.

But that’s not what the action that the White House took today is about. This is about young people who grew up in America – kids who study in our schools, young adults who are starting careers, patriots who pledge allegiance to our flag. These Dreamers are Americans in their hearts, in their minds, in every single way but one: on paper. They were brought to this country by their parents, sometimes even as infants. They may not know a country besides ours. They may not even know a language besides English. They often have no idea they’re undocumented until they apply for a job, or college, or a driver’s license.

Over the years, politicians of both parties have worked together to write legislation that would have told these young people – our young people – that if your parents brought you here as a child, if you’ve been here a certain number of years, and if you’re willing to go to college or serve in our military, then you’ll get a chance to stay and earn your citizenship. And for years while I was President, I asked Congress to send me such a bill.

That bill never came. And because it made no sense to expel talented, driven, patriotic young people from the only country they know solely because of the actions of their parents, my administration acted to lift the shadow of deportation from these young people, so that they could continue to contribute to our communities and our country. We did so based on the well-established legal principle of prosecutorial discretion, deployed by Democratic and Republican presidents alike, because our immigration enforcement agencies have limited resources, and it makes sense to focus those resources on those who come illegally to this country to do us harm. Deportations of criminals went up. Some 800,000 young people stepped forward, met rigorous requirements, and went through background checks. And America grew stronger as a result.

But today, that shadow has been cast over some of our best and brightest young people once again. To target these young people is wrong – because they have done nothing wrong. It is self-defeating – because they want to start new businesses, staff our labs, serve in our military, and otherwise contribute to the country we love. And it is cruel. What if our kid’s science teacher, or our friendly neighbor turns out to be a Dreamer? Where are we supposed to send her? To a country she doesn’t know or remember, with a language she may not even speak?

Let’s be clear: the action taken today isn’t required legally. It’s a political decision, and a moral question. Whatever concerns or complaints Americans may have about immigration in general, we shouldn’t threaten the future of this group of young people who are here through no fault of their own, who pose no threat, who are not taking away anything from the rest of us. They are that pitcher on our kid’s softball team, that first responder who helps out his community after a disaster, that cadet in ROTC who wants nothing more than to wear the uniform of the country that gave him a chance. Kicking them out won’t lower the unemployment rate, or lighten anyone’s taxes, or raise anybody’s wages.

It is precisely because this action is contrary to our spirit, and to common sense, that business leaders, faith leaders, economists, and Americans of all political stripes called on the administration not to do what it did today. And now that the White House has shifted its responsibility for these young people to Congress, it’s up to Members of Congress to protect these young people and our future. I’m heartened by those who’ve suggested that they should. And I join my voice with the majority of Americans who hope they step up and do it with a sense of moral urgency that matches the urgency these young people feel.

Ultimately, this is about basic decency. This is about whether we are a people who kick hopeful young strivers out of America, or whether we treat them the way we’d want our own kids to be treated. It’s about who we are as a people – and who we want to be.

What makes us American is not a question of what we look like, or where our names come from, or the way we pray. What makes us American is our fidelity to a set of ideals – that all of us are created equal; that all of us deserve the chance to make of our lives what we will; that all of us share an obligation to stand up, speak out, and secure our most cherished values for the next generation. That’s how America has traveled this far. That’s how, if we keep at it, we will ultimately reach that more perfect union.”